A little over three years ago we tried a September canoe trip into Quetico Provincal Park in Canada. Quetico, separated by a surveyor’s line from the adjacent Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in Minnesota, roughly matches the BWCAW’s million-acre size, but attracts just a fraction of the visitors. Encountering few people and fewer mosquitoes that September, the autumn grabbed hold of us, and we started to plan an October trip; hoping for a fall color extravaganza. Well, we missed the peak color, but the loop route we followed, from Moose Lake in the BWCAW through Emerald Lake to Saganagons, and then back to the US via the Man Chain(A series of oddly named lakes)was a nine day pleasure. We saw a little snow, a lot of rain, spotted just two canoes during the middle seven days, and felt heavenly warmth from the October sun.

Approaching the landing on the North end of Carp Lake.

Behind the campsite near here,we happened on a rather enchanting grove of mature cedar trees,and two small stands of old growth.

Many of the portages are a virtual carpet of mosses, lichens,and fungi. They thrive when the weak autumn sun leaves the ground damp.

Thanks for the beautiful photos. Nine days would be a wonderful amount of time to spend up in the BWCA and Quetico. You were able to see a nice variety of terrain this way for sure.

I spent five days there this past fall as well and for the reasons you mentioned it is perfect. No bugs, fewer people, no permits (except you still have to pay $12 a night just to sleep on the ground in Canada!!!).